Little fatty!!

BlackLava · #1 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 02:51 AM

Puffer update: hes looking sooo much better! he is just one of the cutest little fish EVAR

a day or two after i got him he was sitting on the bottom, breathing hard, looked really bad

the lady who gave him to me told me that he was a FW puffer....so i went and figured out what kind he was, and turns out hes a BW puffer -_- so we went out and bought some sea salt and some meaty foods for him....he looks a TON better and hes putting on ALOT of weight now and swimming around, hes so adorable, and he eats from your hand and follows you around

we have been adding sea salt and gradually up-ping the salinity. this is also our first time doing a brackish tank! anywho, here are some pics

look at that belly!

that was right after he ate lol

LooseAFur · #2 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 02:57 AM

How difficult is a brackish setup to maintain?

snakehooked · #3 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 02:58 AM

He's so cute! Glad he's doing better.

BlackLava · #4 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 03:09 AM

thats what im finding out LOL! i thought it was gonna be hard, but it doesnt seem to be too difficult. From what i have read, brackish fish might be a bit easier to maintain, simply because since they naturally live in areas where the water parameters fluctuate, they dont have to have perfect water parameters, it is ok if it is allowed to fluctuate a little bit. but, you have to measure the specific gravity, using a hydrometer. if you wanna set up a BW tank though, make sure you find a hydrometer that measures low-salinity, and not just salt water. you will prob pay double the price for a brackish-full marine hydrometer, than just one that measures marine water. when you do water changes you take a bucket or whatever, let the salt dissolve a bit, then pour it into the tank. So far so good lol. seems alot easier than my angelfish/discus tank

LooseAFur · #5 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 03:12 AM

I had a FW Cichlid tank about 3 years ago and at some point I want another tank. Just dont know what kind yet.

BlackLava · #6 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 04:51 AM

did you have africans or south americans? idk why, but im just not a huge cichlid fan

i think most of them are beautiful and all, but for whatever reason i dont have the urge to set up another cichlid tank lol;. before we moved we had a huge albino oscar, and a big jack dempsy that i took home from work cause someone had thrown him in the trash and by some miracle he lived, and then there was a smaller green terror, and a pleco. i love the oscars though

my heart is with my angels though

i could have 100 of them and i would be perfectly happy

Sakara · #7 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 04:53 AM

his teeth aren't cute

BlackLava · #8 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 05:01 AM

have you ever seen the huge SW puffers?? those guys have some mean teeth

Sakara · #9 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 05:04 AM

no, LOL!! I don't wanna get bit by fishies

Keri · #10 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 05:22 AM

Beautiful! He's a Green Spotted Puffer? He's really cute - he would appreciate some little snails in his diet! (will help trim his teeth)

edit: I just looked at your other post, pics of when you first got him: He looks 1000% better! Good job!

BlackLava · #11 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 05:40 AM

yea im surprised he was able to get so much better in such a small amount of time

he sure does seem like a hardy little turd for being a WC fish

Keri · #12 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 05:46 AM

I'm always amazed at how FAST fish (especially saltwater fish) heal! It's crazy! A little TLC and proper water conditions go a loooong way in very little time. You must be doing something right!

BlackLava · #13 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 05:50 AM

thanks

ill admit i had NO idea what he needed when i first got him

did a little reading and it sure did help him! im glad, i have ALWAYS wanted a puffer

Keri · #14 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 05:53 AM

The GSP's get to a decent size too, you're going to love him for a long time! (They can live many years, up to 10 I think) I know someone with a 4 or 5 year old that was converted to full SW and he's a little monkey, always up begging for food like a puppy when you pass by.

BlackLava · #15 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 05:59 AM

hehehe thats what makes puffers so great! they are fearless little turds

i have never seen one puff up though.....but i read that can be bad for them

i believe i read about a few of these little guys living up to 15 years

we just set up an extra tank with alot of java moss and some shrimp. the shrimp are kinda hard to keep alive though, but my hopes were to have those shrimp breed in there so i could have a constant supply of live shrimp, not only for this guy, but my angels and discus LOVE their little shrimpies

then i was gonna add some of those pest snails and we should have NO prob getting those to multiply lol. the angels and the goldfish LOVE those little snails too

josh112990 · #16 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 02:35 PM

i didnt see any body mention these guy's favorite food and that is other fishes fins. and a green spot puffer will get large enough to eat all those mollies in the pic with him lol

BlackLava · #17 (**permalink**) 03-02-2010, 08:22 PM

haha tis is true. as of right now hes not aggressive though. im not sure when we will be moving him into his own tank, but i would love to get a large one and put maybe 2-3 of these guys in there with a ton of live rock or something. we shall see. i wanna make sure this guy is gonna live before i go out and start setting up a new large tank

josh112990 · #18 (**permalink**) 03-09-2010, 06:13 PM

just make sure if you wish to convert him to strict salt water you do it slowly be cause with green spotted puffers they migrate up freshwater streams to breed and then swim back to the mouth of the stream or river where it is almos pure salt water and after the babies hatch they live in fw until they are able to start the journey about 2 inches long. and once they hit that point they work their way out to salt water

CrazyBirdLady · #19 (**permalink**) 03-10-2010, 02:19 AM

OMG cuteness overload! He looks like such a happy and healthy little poof! I am so glad you took the initiative and researched his water needs.

If you are interested in learning more about puffer care I cannot recommend TPF strongly enough! Best, most informative, most supportive puffer community on teh interwebs:

The Puffer Forum • The Puffer Fish Care Community

For your lil GSP I recommend you check out the articles on snail breeding. That way you can have a safe, reliable supply of crunchies to help wear down the teeth.

BlackLava · #20 (**permalink**) 03-10-2010, 02:23 AM

thanks for the tips! this guy is at least 2.5, if not 3in right now. about once every 7 days i have been adding a little more seasalt to the tank. i did read however that they live in BW until they are 4+in, then they can start thriving in full marine water, so he does have a little way to go before we do SW.

i might just leave it as BW water though and maybe add a few other brackish fish later on when we set up a new bigger tank. i might use my 90gal as the brackish tank, and buy a 240-300gal for my angels and discus, and have their tank heavily planted. for the brackish tank i wanted some of these lol:

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ckBlasgNSz...Mono+Sebae.jpg

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